Originally Posted by
Toocool
Hendo reminds me of the Gerald Wallace factor. Not because of their playstyles, cos niether plays that similar. Rather that G.Wallace was asked to be the no.1 guy on our team, and he struggled to do that. In that regard Henderson also struggles to be the no.1 guy. Scouts said he wasn't highly rated because he was an amazing scorer, but rather because of the all-round package. For the intangibles, leadership, strong defense, for his athletic ability and high Bball IQ. No doubt in college he did okay, but he didn't light up the scoreboard. 16 ppg isn't something you'll expect from the star player from Duke.
However, every year we've seem Henderson add notches to his bow, much like Wallace did. Every year you see him continue to add to his game, to refine other parts of it. Can he legitimately be a no.1 option? That's the key question. Do I think he can be a legit no.1 option? I can't tell. Two pre-season games in where we can see nothing but stats (maybe some can see the game). I'll come back to this thread halfway through the year after watching a good number of games and then I'll give my opinion.
Sure you can say, didn't you see the training camp videos or whatever. His shot looks more fluid, he's hitting 3's better than ever before. That's practice. Hendo has the ability to score on crappy defenders. Ellis's ass still hurts from the asswhooping he got from Hendo last season. But against a good defender, Hendo also tends to disappear and defer.
I looked at his usage rate from last year watching his games. He cannot take that next step until he takes more shots, and develops the ability to create his own shot. He did it to some degree last season to varying success. We should all remember his step back jumper to hit the lead.
That's not to say the pantry is empty for Hendo either to take that next step that his fans hope for. He's a co-captain now, so he must lead by example on that court. He has a responsibility to the team. He has a terrific first step and good athletic ability. Very solid from mid-range and improving 3 point range. Ball handling has improved and he does improve every off-season. And he has the belief that he can be an all-star. And a stronger offensive system that's more faster paced than the one Paul Silas used and which is more refined, which means more scoring in transition and more possessions. More easy scores off turnovers. Stronger offensive weapons around him. Mullens has range up to the 3 and is looking to post up more, Gordon can score at will sometimes. MKG is always a driving threat. Kemba can light it up when he can actually hit his friggin jumper. Sessions is a very solid distributer. Improved offense from Biz. That be said, that cast can also take away possessions from Hendo.
Can Hendo take that leap to 18,19,20 ppg? Maybe. But for now let's enjoy the all-round package that he delivers. And for the effort that he gives on both sides of the court. Let's leave this discussion until mid-season, then we can make that judgement call.
Finally, in our team no one is expendable. Except maybe MKG.
